Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I hope this is ok to post this here?
Do you and your family remove your shoes before entering your house and do you make your guests do the same?
Yes ... absolutely .... except for my dog ... she has no shoes to take off but i wipe her paws off when it's muddy.
I've been doing this for so long that it feels totally strange for me to walk around in a home with my shoes on.
No, we can go barefoot or shoed in my house and it does not matter to me either way. We also go barefoot outside much of the time. I don't think it's that big of a deal. If someone asks me to remove my shoes in their house, though, I'm not offended, though.
Interesting post...we never wear shoes in the house, but don't ask others to remove them anymore. When we had crawling babies, we did have people take off their shoes and wear slippers. Germs.
Yes, I remove my shoes and I ask guests to remove theirs as well. I make exceptions for close friends and family as I see fit. This as my right as their host. I remove my shoes inside the homes of others as a sign of respect for their household--unless instructed not to do so.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve Hazzard
I would consider a request to remove my footware for no good reason other than the culture or personality peculiarities of the host/hostess to be an insult and an affront to my culture. I spent over 25 years in the moving and storage business, including 12 years in sales, when I arrived at a residence for a moving estimate and was requested to remove my footware for no good reason, I declined to continue with the sales call as my experience as an over-the-road owner-operator taught me that securing this shipment would be more problems than the job was worth and most likely result in a large residential insurance claim against me and my agent. In the moving business, you need to know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em.
If someone arrived at my home as a guest and displayed such poor manners as to refuse to remove their shoes upon request, they would cease to be granted the priviliges of a guest and would find themselves involuntarily deposited on the stoop with surprising speed, shoes and all. I strive to be a good and generous host, providing for my guests needs, but I refuse to allow rude individuals to take advantage of my hospitality. If you want to enter my house, you will abide by my rules.
I do not require visitors to remove their shoes if they are visiting on business at my behest.
We usually go shoeless in our house, but we're not fanatics about it. It's more of a comfort related issue, rather than a rule. Muddy and/or wet shoes do get removed at the door. Guests can wear or not wear shoes as they desire. When visiting a home or establishment with a no shoes policy, I'm completely at ease with it. IMO, the owner of the home or establishment can set or not set whatever rules they want to. To me, it's not worth getting into a tizzy over one way or the other.
Yes, I remove my shoes and I ask guests to remove theirs as well. I make exceptions for close friends and family as I see fit. This as my right as their host. I remove my shoes inside the homes of others as a sign of respect for their household--unless instructed not to do so.
If someone arrived at my home as a guest and displayed such poor manners as to refuse to remove their shoes upon request, they would cease to be granted the priviliges of a guest and would find themselves involuntarily deposited on the stoop with surprising speed, shoes and all. I strive to be a good and generous host, providing for my guests needs, but I refuse to allow rude individuals to take advantage of my hospitality. If you want to enter my house, you will abide by my rules.
I do not require visitors to remove their shoes if they are visiting on business at my behest.
I'm not picking on this poster just pointing out a generational change.
Until fairly recently, being a gracious host has always meant being concerned about making your guests feel comfortable and welcomed in your home. Now being a good host means your guests have to tow your line or you throw them out?
Me, me, me, me, me, me, me ,me....
Having a rude guest used to call for being a tolerant host, taking the high road and being a better example to them. Now when someone is rude we act just as rude, or a little more so.
We are strictly a shoes-on household. Now - due to the current muddiness (our lot has no grass yet and is full of mud) if you came to my door and your shoes were COVERED in 2" thick mud - which is a real possibility, sure i would appreciate you taking your shoes off.
But assuming there is not 2" of snow on your shoes - it is a dry summer day, you got out of car on pavement, you walked up my paved driveway, up my paved walkway and came up to my porch and then wiped your shoes gently on my door mat -- I would think it was odd that you wanted to take your shoes off to walk around my home.
I vacuum occasionally, but honestly - your better off with shoes on than off - if the cat had just had an accident (yes, my cats regurgitate more often than I would like) and I didn't see it yet, or if the dog had tracked a huge glob of mud that I missed -- you'd be happier in your shoes than barefoot or in socks.
We comply with "shoes-off" requests when we go to other people's homes - we think it is strange, but we comply.
We would never ask our guests to remove shoes - if they did it voluntarily, I guess we wouldn't stop them, but would find it odd.
Usually when entering a home of someone who requires you remove their shoes - we quickly learn it is not a house we are comfortable in. Future meetings/get togethers are often held at 3rd party establishments (restaurants).
I'm not picking on this poster just pointing out a generational change.
Until fairly recently, being a gracious host has always meant being concerned about making your guests feel comfortable and welcomed in your home. Now being a good host means your guests have to tow your line or you throw them out?
Me, me, me, me, me, me, me ,me....
Having a rude guest used to call for being a tolerant host, taking the high road and being a better example to them. Now when someone is rude we act just as rude, or a little more so.
I do not recall any generation that acted as doormats to rude guests in violation of customary rules of hospitality, in the interest of "providing a better example".
I simply hold my guests to a standard of customary behaviours that crosses most cultures.
One of the standard customs of visiting another's home is to comply with their requests. In return, you will enjoy the priviliges and protections customarily extended to guests. If they do not feel comfortable complying with the rules of the household (due to special needs or cultural taboos) they are free to politely explain their situation and request an exception from their host. Otherwise, they are welcome to leave and then they can meet somewhere public where such conflicts will not arise.
My example pertained to a guest who was politely asked (and they would be asked, should they not remove their shoes) to remove their footwear, but refused on the principle that their personal habits trump their social responsibilities as a guest. They would then be asked to leave. Should they also refuse to leave, I would have no qualms about rescinding their priviliges as a guest and assisting them with a hasty departure.
People tend to do that in NE Ohio. I would not ask a guest to take his shoes off, but most people do it without being asked.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I spent over 25 years in the moving and storage business, including 12 years in sales, when I arrived at a residence for a moving estimate and was requested to remove my footware for no good reason, I declined to continue with the sales call as my experience as an over-the-road owner-operator taught me that securing this shipment would be more problems than the job was worth and most likely result in a large residential insurance claim against me and my agent. In the moving business, you need to know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em. 
